The Pakistani rupee (PKR) once again remained unchanged versus the US dollar in the interbank market during the final trading session of the week.
It is worth noting that this is the fourth time that the local currency has shown a 0.00 per cent change this week. The only change witnessed in the rupee’s value was reported by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on December 1, when the rupee appreciated only 0.12 per cent to close at Rs223.69.
The rupee closed at Rs223.69 against the US dollar on Friday. On a weekly basis, the PKR registered an increase of 0.11 per cent against the greenback.
Additionally, the SBP’s foreign exchange reserves declined by $327 million every week, totaling $7.5 billion as of November 25, 2022.
For Pakistan, which has been frantically pursuing dollar inflows to meet its balance-of-payments needs, the reserve position is crucial. A low reserve level puts pressure on the currency, which has recently only experienced stability.
As data showing increased US consumer spending in October encouraged investor hopes that the peak in interest rates was on the horizon, the dollar held steady on Friday but was pinned down near 16-week lows against a basket of major currencies.
A stronger US dollar limited gains as oil prices, a major metric of currency parity, edged up in Asian trading on Friday on expectations for further easing of COVID controls in China, which might aid in the recovery of demand in the world’s second-largest economy.
